Page 1 of Inside the Penalty Box

Chapter 1

Aurora

Since I was a little girl, I idolized my mother. To me, she always seemed to be free as a bird, something I wanted to be when I grew up. Nothing ever seemed to bother her. She never seemed to be stressed or anxious, unlike me. Over the years, she had her share of boyfriends. She’d also had her share of husbands—three in the last eight years. Each one of them ended on an unpleasant note, but she was resilient, and within weeks, my mother was usually back out there on the dating scene.

When I’d ask her if we’d ever have a father that stayed around again, she’d smile and say, “Aurora, life is to be lived. To take chances, to have fun. That is what I am doing, having fun. You’ll understand one day.”

Walker, my brother, and I often wondered if she had always been this way, especially when our father was alive. He passed away when I was only two, so I never really got to know him. Walker, who is a couple of years older than me, barely even remembered him. Mom told us stories about him, and it seemed like they’d had a rather normal marriage. In her recollection, she’d tell us he was down-to-earth, something she was not, but that he kept her grounded, which she admitted she desperately needed. From what she told us, he rarely took chances, especially once we were in the picture, which drove her crazy. She told us she loved him immensely, but she also craved the wild and spontaneous life, and once he was gone, that was what she sought, regardless of how it affected Walker or me.

In some ways, I wanted that type of life for myself, to have fun and to take chances, yet I craved stability, probably because it was something I never had. My mother wasn’t around much, and when she was, she didn’t want to be known as Mom, but as Penelope. She said it made her feel younger. In some ways, I almost felt that we didn’t have a mother; we had a best friend instead.

My friends would laugh when I’d tell them I wanted to be like my mother. When I’d ask why they were laughing, they’d tell me it was because I was the exact opposite of her, and they looked forward to the day that I actually took a chance on anything.

I’ll admit, loosening up was hard for me. As much as I craved that same freedom my mother had, I craved structure as well. I took school seriously, focusing on passing every class I had with a high mark. I’d also dated the same guy for the past three years, and my life nearly ended when he broke it off with me. To be honest, I’d cried and moped around in bed for months afterward. Something I’d never seen my mother do. In fact, after her last breakup, she was onto the next man before the night had ended.

My brother was exactly like her, or perhaps he was more like the men she brought home. He was a player, and he’d learned from the best, so you couldn’t fault him. He’d watched my mother, and he’d idolized most of the men she’d brought home, and he treated women exactly how these men had treated my mother and the way my mother treated men. When he got bored with his current fling, which never seemed to be longer than a week or two, if it even lasted that long, he’d drop them and move on to the next girl, who was in the shadows waiting.

These differences and flaws had led us both to where we stood right now—the Vancouver airport, together with bags in hand, going on two very separate paths.

“I’ll see you in a few months,” Walker said as he wrapped his arms around me one last time.

I hugged him tight, wishing that he wasn’t leaving me for such a long time. “Just be careful. I need you to come home. I don’t think I can handle Mom all on my own,” I whispered, sniffling and wiping tears from my eyes.

“What on earth are you crying for? I’ll be home before you know it. I’m not going off to war, you know, only to basic training,” Walker said as he picked his duffel bag up off the floor and flung it over his shoulder. He headed through the door to board his plane.

Sniffling, I stood with my luggage, crying and waving as I watched him disappear. I blew my nose, wiped my eyes, and turned away, pulling my carry-on behind me, and headed toward my gate.

It was sheer luck Walker was leaving the same day I was flying to Mexico with the girls. It had been an impromptu decision for him to join the army. An uncomfortable decision for me since we had grown so close over the years. The army wasn’t always his plan, but circumstances beyond his control had led him to this path, which conveniently happened right after we’d attended a year-end party at some schoolmate’s house.

My best friend Lorelai had broken up with her boyfriend of five years. She was on a collision course to punish herself, and she went after Walker. I tried to persuade her not to, but she was insistent. My brother, being the asshole he is, took her upstairs and, in his words, screwed the ex-boyfriend right out of her head.

Once it was over, they came downstairs and, if it was possible, he tore her already broken heart into a million more tiny pieces. He looked her up and down, chuckled to himself, shook his head, ran his hand over the stubble on his chin and said, “Darlin, thanks for the evening, but I’m not the type of guy for you.” Then he took his drink and disappeared into the crowd.

Twenty minutes later, she was crying on my shoulder, and when I saw my brother, I let him have it. He took off with a group of friends and got arrested for drinking and driving a few hours later. I’d hated him for hurting her that way. Lorelai was my best friend, and even though she claimed she was only looking for a fun time and nothing permanent, she at least deserved a guy who’d treat her with some form of respect.

The next couple of weeks, she moped around over my brother, but come the end of the summer, she finally agreed with me it had been a stupid idea to even entertain getting involved with him.

For a long time, I could still see the hurt and disappointment on her face. The part that pissed me off most was that, for a bit, every time someone would mention his name, she’d fight back tears. She did not know how lucky she was that he’d spared her heart and acted like an asshole, even if at the time it hadn’t felt like it.

The end of summer came. Boyfriend number twelve (I think) had just left my mother. Walker was still doing his community sentence, and that was when he announced he was changing his life and joining the army.

I was still angry with him and trying to deal with how he’d treated my best friend when he told me. So, I did the most spontaneous thing I’d done in my life: forgave my brother instantly and agreed to be dragged away by my five best friends to an island for five nights. I had a goal in mind: to get over my breakup before I started my last semester of the sports therapy program, and to have one last get-together with my friends before we all went our separate ways.

So, here I was wandering through the airport, pulling my suitcase behind me. It was so busy I doubted I’d ever find my gate or my girls. Looking down at my boarding pass, I checked the number once more.

I let out a sigh, rounded a corner, and looked up, finally seeing a sign for my gate number up ahead. Shoving my pass into my passport, I picked up my pace, then heard my name being called. I looked over my shoulder to see Lorelai running to catch up with me.

“Ready for fun in the sun?” I questioned, hoping that today she was in a better mood than she had been since the night of the party.

She smiled and nodded, but I could tell it wasn’t her usual happiness. I knew she was still feeling crushed by my brother’s actions and the breakup with her boyfriend. At least, I hoped that was the problem.

“Better put a smile on that face. You may meet the man of your dreams this week.” I winked.

She groaned. “Look, I’m not looking for anything on this trip. After being dumped, then treated the way I was by your brother, I think I’ll stay single. I pity the guy who tries anything with me next.”

“Oh, no,” I muttered, worried about my friend.

“Seriously, am I that bad?” Lorelai cried, meeting my eyes, tears lining them. “Is there something about me that men find repulsive?”

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